Originally posted on WISH-TV:WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. (AP) — Indiana farmers interested in industrial hemp’s economic potential can learn about the best production practices for that still-illegal crop at an upcoming Purdue Extension event. Hemp was an important source of oilseed and fiber in the U.S. until a 1937 federal law ended the industry. Commercial… […]

In his pursuit of the 2016 Republican presidential nomination, Rand Paul has made sure to put lots of distance between himself and his father—and Dad appears to be firing back. Ron Paul does not approve of his son Rand Paul’s position on the Iran deal, and he let him know Thursday evening in a speech … Continue reading Ron Paul’s Passive-Aggressive Campaign […]

Written By Emily Gray Brosious Posted: 07/28/2015, 02:29pm The Israeli Health Ministry will allow medical marijuana to be sold in pharmacies alongside other prescription medications, according to Haaretz. This policy change means Israeli medical marijuana patients will be able to fill their prescriptions at local pharmacies, rather than buying directly from […]

Originally posted on living in stigma:Scientists are studying chronic stress and depression, with a focus on ‘endocannabinoids’, which are brain chemicals similar to substances in marijuana. The findings raise the possibility that components of marijuana may be useful in reducing depression that results from chronic stress. “In the animal models we studied, […]

Originally posted on Fox 59:[ooyala code=”o3MTdqdDoI_2-MqccZAh5P7epBJeuKcE” player_id=”4839d4b491844b6da3d47f354f217ce5″] MUNCIE, Ind. (April 14,2015)– In the months following the arrest of a Muncie pain doctor, some Delaware County residents have turned to street drugs. Federal and local authorities raided Dr. William Hedrick’s pain clinic in the fall of 20 […]

Governor Beshear, the General Assembly and the Energy and Environment Cabinet (EEC) are seeking comments on how the Commonwealth should move forward with regulating the oil and gas industry — including fracking. Around the country, fracking has been known to create toxic air pollution, contaminate drinking water and lead to health problems in communities … […]

Yesterday the news came out about Sen. Mitch McConnell about to REPEAL OBAMACARE with a "Simple 51-Vote Majority". Hallelujah! It is my opinion that the "Repeal" option should be utilized more often when good people get hurt by a bad law! That is the reason that I post about "repealing" the laws surrounding the … Continue re […]

Originally posted on Applied Faith:I have to speak out. I minister at an inpatient detox facility On my weekly teaching visits to our local detox facility, I see the faces behind the numbers that the “intelligentsia” of addiction services bandies back and forth. To me, the numbers have their use, but the suffering of…

Originally posted on chrysalaneous:The Harrison Narcotics Act (1914) was enacted to ensure the government got their cut in the addiction game. Usage of heroin or cocaine was not illegal, but selling it without paying the taxes was akin to bootlegging. Here is where the seeds of addiction were being sewn bureaucratically. This hustler Francis…

WASHINGTON — It’s just January 2013, but in the race to oust Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) after nearly three decades in the Senate, one small super PAC is already exploring all options.

Progress Kentucky, launched in December, was born out of discussions among Democratic activist Shawn Reilly, who now heads the super PAC, and his friends as they debated how to defeat McConnell in 2014.

"Nobody else is doing it. So let’s start a super PAC and make it a grassroots effort," Reilly said, recalling the reasoning process. "Make it of the people of Kentucky and for the people of Kentucky."

Reilly has a progressive background, having worked for Americans Against Escalation in Iraq in its 2007 summer campaign as well as on a number of statewide and local races in Kentucky. Before starting Progress Kentucky, he was a member of the executive committee of the state Democratic Party.

His group’s first order of business is to find candidates to take on McConnell from both the Democratic Party in the general election and the Republican Party in a primary challenge. As Politico reported on Monday, Progress Kentucky is in contact with Tea Party groups across the Bluegrass State to try to convince a credible conservative to run against McConnell in the primary. The group has already sent out a petition to 22 candidates — Democrats, Republicans and independents — to see if anyone is willing to challenge the state’s senior senator.

By actively seeking out candidates, Reilly said, his super PAC is letting them know that they’ll have support if they run. "Hey, if you want to run, you’re going to have some support on the ground here to help you," he said.

It may seem strange that a liberal Democratic organization would be working with Tea Party supporters, but Reilly said there are important areas in which the two groups agree.

"They are just as concerned with [McConnell’s] corruption and crony capitalism — some of the things that he’s done over the years in terms of earmarks," Reilly said. "They are just as much concerned about those things as people on the left are. They’re looking for candidates that can deliver that type of message, and we’re looking at potentially supporting those kind of candidates who can deliver that good-government, anti-corruption type of message."

In fact, this would not be the first time that a Democratic group involved itself in a Republican primary campaign with the intent of knocking off the candidate with the better chance of winning the general election.

Last year, Senate Majority PAC, a Democratic super PAC, ran ads attacking Missouri businessman John Brunner in the GOP Senate primary because they thought he could have seriously challenged the vulnerable Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.) in the general election. At the same time, McCaskill’s campaign ran ads promoting then-Rep. Todd Akin (R-Mo.), the seemingly weakest candidate in the Republican field. Akin went on to win the three-way Republican primary and then fulfill Democratic hopes and dreams by laying waste to his own campaign with bizarre comments about rape.

In the 2012 Indiana GOP Senate primary, the super PAC American Bridge 21st Century released numerous memos and online videos attacking then-Sen. Richard Lugar (R-Ind.) for not paying taxes in the Hoosier State and for residing primarily in Washington, D.C. These efforts, while not central to Lugar’s primary loss to Indiana state treasurer Richard Mourdock, helped drive negative news against Lugar during the early stages of the race. Mourdock went on to mimic Akin and lose the general election after spouting inappropriate comments about rape.

But McConnell is not Akin or Mourdock. To pull off something like this, Progress Kentucky is going to need money. So far, it is relying largely on grassroots donations and not on the kind of large contributors that most major super PACs use to fill their coffers. The group has a fundraising target of $100,000 by the end of February and hopes to raise up to $2 million to fund television, field and other voter targeting activities.

The group has also been in contact with labor unions in Kentucky and helped to roll out a report by the Public Campaign Action Fund, a campaign finance reform group, tying McConnell’s use of the filibuster to particular campaign donors. Those connections could help Progress Kentucky as it takes on the incumbent Republican senator.